Give Thanks for All Things

On a quick pass through the mall several years ago, I purchased a set of hand towels from Williams-Sonoma.  I know, I know, this story is already a snoozer.  “Hand towels for the kitchen?  This is not what I want to read about today, Brian.”  Stick with me – I’m getting there.  The towels were designed with a deep red and bright orange print, these towels were always a favorite of mine (as hand towels for the kitchen go) – happily trapped somewhere between Thanksgiving and Christmas, they just had that “it’s Fall” feel to them.  I used those hand towels as inspiration for my Freshly Made Sketches card this week.  Here’s my card:

For All Things, Stampin' Up!, Brian King, FMS202

And here’s the sketch for the challenge Amy O’Neill is hosting this week:FMS202

Tips, Tricks and Reminders

  • Creating a Striped Background.  I love the look of a bold, diagonal stripe.  It’s wonderful with the stripes you want are printed in a Designer Series Paper, but you’re the belle of the ball when you can create your own with your own colors and stripe widths.  I created my own background pattern for this card by cutting strips of cardstock and layering them side-by-side in the background.  I used 1/2″ strips for the orange and white, and I used 3/4″ strips for the red.  If you missed my video about making bold, striped background for your cards, check it out here.
  • Border Repetition.  With a busy background (and these bold stripes create a very busy background), you it was important that I break up the space with similar borders.  A thick layer of Cherry Cobbler and a thin layer of Whisper White create a nice border around both layers on this card – and that repetition makes my brain feel at ease with all the movement from the colorful stripes on the card.  I used the same principle to “tame the busy” on my card yesterday (see it here).
  • Pumpkin Pie AND Cherry Cobbler?  Yes, Please.  Cherry Cobbler and Pumpkin Pie are the perfect colors to recreate my Williams-Sonoma kitchen towels.  Aside from making me hungry (pie AND cobbler), they are surprisingly wonderful together – it’s almost like they clash so much that they work well.Stampin' Up! Color Inspiration: Cherry Cobber, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White

Stamp Sets:  For All Things  Papers:  Cherry Cobbler, Pumpkin Pie, Thick Whisper White Inks:  Cherry Cobbler  Accessories:  Extra Large Oval punch, Hexagon punch (for banner tips), Stampin’ Dimensionals

I hope you’ll pop over to Freshly Made Sketches to see the cards by the design team members and to play along with this week’s challenge.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Brian

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Tomorrow.  I’m excited to share that tomorrow, September 7, marks the launch of a new online Design Challenge – The Global Design Project.   Stampin’ Up! demonstrators from all over the globe are sharing inspiration in hopes that you will play along – and I hope you will.  I’m honored to be a part of such an incredible group.  Here’s a sneak peek at this week’s color challenge so you can start making your project:

 

20 Comments

  1. I love that you were inspired by towels!! I know other things people are inspired by – but that’s a whole other post. Your card is so you! Clean and Layered. Stunning. So excited about the Global Design Project! Wow what an honor to be asked to be part of that.

  2. I would love to be the “belle of the ball” and give the striped background a try. Fabulous inspiration, too!

  3. Two of my favorite colors…..I would love those kitchen towels….never thought of putting the two together.

  4. I was hoping we’d get to see the towels! Love the stripes!

  5. Oooh-la-la! Love Williams & Sonoma! The nearest one to us is two hours away, so I always look forward to our annual holiday trek! Great card and I’m sure they are great towels!

  6. Pie and cobbler, two great food and two great colors. Love them together.

  7. Hi Brian:

    I love today’s card. It’s bold yet clean and oh so defined. I love the red and orange together but never would have imagined that combination could work, yet it does and not only does it work, it works beautifully. Fabulous card from a fabulous designer! Thanks for sharing your talents.

  8. Love the card! Thanks for the tips on using different sized stripes. Very classic! Thanks too, for letting us know about the challenge for tomorrow early. It gives more time to consider ideas.

  9. Who woulda thought – great combination – love it love it

  10. Talk about dessert heaven!

  11. Hand Towels for inspiration. Perfect. And why not!!! I love knowing where color inspiration comes from. Thanks for sharing your story. The colors are so very perfect. The striped card is so amazing. Perfect in every way.

  12. Brian, so like this SO SIMPLE but beautiful card. THANKS to you for your daily shares and ideas with us. Happy FALL to you

  13. Only you could come up with this unthinkable color combo and show us they play so very well together! I also love the different widths of the stripes…gotta give that a try!!

  14. Such a bold design. I can only imagine what those towels look like! I love how the rectangle and the oval with the sentiment are the perfect opposites to your diagonal stripes. Absolutely brilliant! Thanks for playing along with us at Freshly Made Sketches!

  15. Love the background story Brian, I always find the funniest things around the house that inspire me, usually it’s my ‘junk mail’. I want to see the towels too!!! See you at GDP tomorrow.

  16. Bold, and oh so Brian King-ly! Love this card, and I also love that your kitchen towels inspired you to create such a gorgeous card! Williams-Sonoma is the best! They used to have a wonderful kitchen counter cleaner; not sure if they still do, but it’s awesome! 🙂

  17. snore…cough…snore… what? a brian king card? oh I’m up for that. it so bold and beautiful. another stunning creation.

  18. Those colors have been on my mind for my Va Tech grad niece’s fall birthday. I hope I can come up with something half as stunning as your cards.

  19. I just love this card Brian! The colours are fab together and as always your clean lines make this a “you” card! thanks for joining us at FMS this week!

  20. Pingback: Pals Blog Hop: So Thankful - STAMP WITH BRIAN

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